Cleveland Sprinter Found Slain : Crime: Victim’s boyfriend arraigned on murder charge. He tells San Francisco police her death was part of suicide pact.

A Cleveland High athlete was found slain in a San Francisco hotel room over the weekend, allegedly strangled by her boyfriend as part of a possible suicide pact, authorities said Tuesday.

Police discovered the body of Deborah DeLeon, 17, about 6 a.m. Saturday in a room at the Pickwick Hotel in downtown San Francisco, Inspector Tony Camilleri of the San Francisco Police Department said. DeLeon, a junior and track athlete at the Reseda school, had been strangled.

Her boyfriend, Ramin Nikooseresht, was found in the room with his wrists slashed, Camilleri said. Nikooseresht, 25, of Encino, was taken to a local hospital for treatment. He later was arrested and arraigned on murder charges.

Camilleri said his department was alerted to the killing early Saturday after Nikooseresht apparently called his family in Los Angeles to report he had strangled his girlfriend and was attempting to kill himself. The relatives contacted Los Angeles police, who then called their counterparts in San Francisco, according to Camilleri.

Nikooseresht told detectives he and DeLeon had traveled to the Bay Area late last week to escape Los Angeles and DeLeon’s parents, who apparently disapproved of their relationship, Camilleri said. Although the young couple had considered continuing on to New York or even to France, Nikooseresht told police he and DeLeon had agreed instead to commit suicide.

“He claims they had some type of pact, but we have nothing to confirm it was willing on her part,” said Camilleri, who added that neither drugs nor alcohol appeared to play a role in the slaying.

Nikooseresht was held without bail in a county jail, where he will await his May 5 preliminary hearing, jail officials said.

Cleveland track and field Coach Everett Macy said DeLeon was a popular student on campus who carried a B average. DeLeon competed in the 100 and 200 meters and ran a leg on the 400-meter relay team.

“She was a very good student and was very well-liked,” said Macy, the school’s dean of students. “She was the kind of student that others looked up to and respected.”

Macy said he plans to establish a perpetual trophy in DeLeon’s name that will be awarded annually to a scholar-athlete on the track team. He also said that students plan to include a caricature of DeLeon in a mural that is being painted near the school’s physical education buildings.